OCEAN RISKS IN SIDS AND LDCS

The report analyzes how SIDS and LDCs are disproportionately vulnerable to coupled ocean risks, including sea-level rise, ocean warming, and macroeconomic shocks. It emphasizes the need for context-specific resilience strategies, the integration of indigenous knowledge, and the deployment of novel financial tools to support a sustainable ocean economy.

• SIDS and LDCs are characterized by a heavy reliance on the natural environment, public sector employment, and foreign financing, making them particularly vulnerable to extreme weather, geological events, coastal urbanization, and global health or financial crises.
• Ocean risks are 'coupled complex risks' where environmental stressors from climate change, such as floods and tropical storms, interact with socioeconomic stressors like pollution, dredging, and fisheries overexploitation.
• Sea-level rise (SLR) is projected to be one of the most expensive and irreversible consequences of climate change, with LDCs, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa, expected to suffer the most significant GDP and population losses.
• Ocean warming and marine heatwaves are causing poleward shifts in fish species and declines in stock abundance, which threatens the nutrition and livelihoods of coastal communities in tropical SIDS and LDCs.
• Natural disasters cause significant internal displacement in SIDS and LDCs; between 2008 and 2019, nine events in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Haiti, and Cuba displaced over one million people each.
• High dependence on coastal tourism creates specific risks, including increased marine litter due to higher waste production by tourists and extreme economic vulnerability to pandemics, as seen with COVID-19.
• SIDS and LDCs face significant barriers to adopting renewable energy, including high logistical costs due to remoteness, lack of incentive policies, and limited technical capacity, leaving them heavily reliant on imported petroleum.
• The transition to a low-carbon economy presents 'transition risks' for oil- and gas-producing SIDS such as Angola, Bahrain, Timor-Leste, and Trinidad & Tobago, as fossil fuel assets may become stranded.
• Building resilience requires a shift from sector-specific risk management to a 'coupled complex risk mindset' that integrates scientific data with local indigenous and ecological knowledge.
• Novel financial tools, including blended finance, parametric insurance (such as the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility), and fisheries index insurance, are essential for hedging against climate risks and attracting private investment.

APA

Tokunaga, K., Blandon, A., Blasiak, R., Jouffray, J.-B., Wabnitz, C. C., & Norström, A. V. (2021). OCEAN RISKS IN SIDS AND LDCS. Global Resilience Partnership. https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/orraa-ocean-risks.pdf

Chicago

Tokunaga, Kanae, Abigayil Blandon, Robert Blasiak, Jean-Baptiste Jouffray, Colette C.C. Wabnitz, and Albert V. Norström. OCEAN RISKS IN SIDS AND LDCS. Global Resilience Partnership, 2021. https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/orraa-ocean-risks.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tokunaga |first1=Kanae |last2=Blandon |first2=Abigayil |last3=Blasiak |first3=Robert |last4=Jouffray |first4=Jean-Baptiste |last5=Wabnitz |first5=Colette C.C. |last6=Norström |first6=Albert V. |title=OCEAN RISKS IN SIDS AND LDCS |publisher=Global Resilience Partnership |date=October 2021 |url=https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/orraa-ocean-risks.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tokunaga2021ocean, author = {Tokunaga, Kanae and Blandon, Abigayil and Blasiak, Robert and Jouffray, Jean-Baptiste and Wabnitz, Colette C.C. and Norström, Albert V.}, title = {{OCEAN RISKS IN SIDS AND LDCS}}, institution = {Global Resilience Partnership}, year = {2021}, month = oct, url = {https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/orraa-ocean-risks.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }